SATW Q & A

Here's the 3rd installment of Success Along the Weigh Q & A.  I hope you've had fun reading the 1st and 2nd versions so let's get to the third!

Do you think you would be doing this, or doing as well, if the Mr wasn't working towards the same goal?

I think it would be much harder to motivate myself to go down and do the workouts if I was single or if he wasn't on board with living healthy.  I can see the nutrition being fairly easy to maintain but when you know there is someone there that depends on you to be their workout buddy (whether a spouse or a friend, co-worker, etc), it tends to motivate you to just do it.  It wasn't always like this for us.  We spent more years than not sabotaging our efforts so just as people can be supportive, they can also be detrimental if you're not on the same page.  Thankfully we got on the same page 3 1/2 years ago and have been ever since.  While it is easier, it's not impossible to do it on your own.  If you need support, online communities can be a good source of support and accountability like Livestrong.com, Sparkpeople.com and MyFitnessPal.com

What really odd changes have you noticed about yourself (physical or mental/emotional)?

Most people might argue I couldn't get more odd but that's another story.  I think physically the really weird thing is that I seem to be losing "chunks" in places.  A big weird dent in the calf here, a hollow spot in the gut there, a dip in one thigh and not the other.  I expect to be a big loose skin mess for a while but hopefully the swiss cheese look won't be permanent!  As far as mentally, I am finding that I don't "emotionally brace" as much in public.  When I was at my heaviest or the first 100-150 lbs lost, I was convinced people were going to scream insults out the window at me or from the patio at a restaurant, etc.  Despite this never having happened, I'd read plenty of horror stories about obese women who had this happen to them and it terrified me.  I'm a dweller and I would replay that tape in my head forever if some idiot thought they had to the right to scream at me just because I'm fat.  But as the weight comes off and I'm more in the realm of 'normal fat' as I call it, I feel like I can walk a little taller and a little more confidently without as much fear that everyone is looking at me.  

How much time per day/week do you spend on food prep, etc? It looks like you have home cooked dinners most nights, plus your fruit salads.


 Yes, I cook 6 days a week and our high cal day is the one day I get a break which after 6 days of cooking 3 meals a day and prep, I desperately need!  I never actually thought about how much time I put into prep but I might have to write that down for a week just to see!  Every other week we go to the grocery and that night we (okay, the Mr) sits down and cuts the fruits and veggies for the week.  I get celery, radishes, broccoli and cauliflower without fail and he cuts them and puts them into a relish tray for me to keep in the crisper drawer.  Then he'll use the melon baller on my watermelon and cantaloupe and I'll cut the pineapple if we get it because he HATES cutting pineapple.  So that takes about an hour.  Many people have asked if my fruit salad is fresh or from the deli/pre-made.  I always use fresh ingredients when making my fruit salad.  Watermelon and cantaloupe are almost always present and add in's are grapes, half a navel orange or clementine when in season or pineapple.  I always use a Fruit/Veggie wash on the grapes, apples or anything with an edible skin.  Think of how you look through apples.  Pick one up, look at it, it's not right for you, you put it back.  10 people could've touched that same apple you decide to buy and they've all coughed in their hand, blown their nose, gone to the bathroom without washing their hands, etc.  Not to gross you out but I think produce washes are a really important habit to get into.  When I'm on top of things, I'll plan out the menu at least a night in advance (I've been trying to plan a week in advance lately though) and when I'm REALLY ahead of the game, I'll do all of my prep during the day so that when it's time for dinner after a hard workout, I'm not having to do 15 minutes of cutting and chopping in addition to the cooking.  I really like to have stuff like onions, zucchini and pepper pre-cut so I can just grab them and throw them in dishes.  I love to have a bunch of caramelized onions on hand when I'm feeling ambitious because it's an hour of babysitting but I'll usually do that if I'm making a recipe to share on the blog since I'll already be in there.  (Earlier in the week I was baking banana bread and making a batch of chipotle jalapeno refried beans at the same time and still had the energy to make filet mignon and twice baked potatoes for dinner that night!)  So prepping things ahead of time is key if you're cooking every night to save yourself some time and I usually dedicate Sundays to that or if I have an hour or so on Monday after I have a menu in my head for the next few days.


A side note:


If you've ever had problems commenting here, please give it another shot.  I believe I may have fixed the issue and the comments are now embedded so comments can be directly replied to as well.  (Hallelujah!)  I hope this will encourage people who tell me they lurk to jump on in and comment!  :-)


I hope you liked this installment of SATW Q&A.  If you have any questions for future editions, you can leave one in the comments or contact me at mrs {at} successalongtheweigh {dot} com!


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